Login / Signup

First-principles thermal transport in amorphous Ge 2 Sb 2 Te 5 at the nanoscale.

Thuy-Quynh DuongAssil BouzidCarlo MassobrioGuido OriMauro BoeroEvelyne Martin
Published in: RSC advances (2021)
Achieving a precise understanding of nanoscale thermal transport in phase change materials (PCMs), such as Ge 2 Sb 2 Te 5 (GST), is the key of thermal management in nanoelectronics, photonic and neuromorphic applications using non-volatile memories. By resorting to a first-principles approach to calculate the thermal conductivity of amorphous GST, we found that size effects and heat transport via propagative modes persist well beyond extended range order distances typical of disordered network-forming materials. Values obtained are in quantitative agreement with the experimental data, by revealing a strong size dependence of the thermal conductivity down to the 1.7-10 nm range, fully covering the scale of current PCMs-based devices. In particular, a reduction of thermal conductivity as large as 75% occurs for dimensions lying below 2 nm. These results provide a quantitative description of the thermal properties of amorphous GST at the nanoscale and are expected to underpin the development of PCM-based device applications.
Keyphrases
  • room temperature
  • photodynamic therapy
  • machine learning
  • electronic health record
  • artificial intelligence
  • high speed
  • heat stress
  • deep learning
  • big data
  • solid phase extraction